Tonsillotome.



E. B. SWEHDFEGER.

Patented Jan. 14, 1919.

s uns cav. Pnurcruma, wn

ELBECRT B. SWERDFEGEB., 0F DENVER, CULORADO.

roivsinnofroiun.

Application led November 2li, 1917.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, ELBERT B. SWERD- Feelin, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Denver, in the county of Denver and tate ofColorado, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inTonsillotomes; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full,clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in thev art to which it appertains to make and use thesame.

This invention relates to surgery and more particularly to an instrumentfor the removal of tonsils.

Diiiiculty has been encountered in the removal of tonsils by varioustypes of instruments previously provided for this purpose because of therela-tive disposition of the operating devices and the snare-carryingmember, for the reason that the manipulating means and the carrying partof that portion of the instrument which is provided with the tonsilengaging member occupy a position which materially interferes with thevision during the operation of the surgeon in the application and use ofthe tool upon a tonsil.

It is, therefore, one of the objects of the present invention to soimprove the construction of instruments of this type, that the vision ofthe operator is not interfered with during the application of theinstrument.

It is a further object of the present invention to facilitate theadjustment of the snare over the tonsil and render the operation of thedevice easier and more effective.

VVit-h these and other objects in view, as will be rendered manifest inthe following specification and apparent to those skilled in the art,the invention consists in the construction, combination, and in detailsof elements as more fully described hereinafter, one form of theinstrument being` illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which,

Figure l is a side elevation of the device with the snare loop adjustedin position to operate upon a left tonsil,

Fig. 2 is an end view looking toward the snare loop in Fig. l,

Fig. 3 is an underneath plan view of a portion of the instrument,showing` the draw-rod and the rotatively or turnably adjustable casingsection,

Fig. 4 is a cross sectional view of Fig. l,

Specication of Letters Patent.

Patented dan, it, i919.,

Serial No. 203,816.

Fig. 5 is a cross section on line 5-5 of Fig. l, and

Fig. 6 is a cross section on line 6-6 of Fig. 2.

An important feature of the present invention is the relativedisposition of the snaresreceiving loop to the carrying and operatingparts of the instrument in such manner that the view of the operator orsurgeon, in applying and operating the device is not obstructed by theparts, and a further feature of the invention is the provision of means,whereby the snare-receiving loop may be readily adjusted on one or theother sido of the axis of the operating means so as to facilitate theadjustment of the snarereceiving loop over either the right or lefttonsil without, in either case, interfering with the vision of thesurgeon of the tonsil being' operated upon. To the attainment of theseobjects, I provide a tubular sectional casing -or housing consisting ofthe parts A and B, the former of which is shown as rectangular in crosssection and the latter as circular in cross section, as clearly shown inFigs. 4L and 5. The casing section B is pro vided, at its outer end,with a snare-receiving loop C which is disposed laterally as to the axisof the section B, and preferably is inclined rearwardly from theoperating end of the section so as to conform readily to the throatstructure around the base of the tonsil when the casing A, B is insertedinto the mouth of the patient. By this lateral and oblique dispositionof the snare loop C, a clear view along the side of the casing A, B ishad by the surgeon, thus facilitating adjustment of the loop about thetonsil and rendering more effective the operation of the instrument whenthe snare, which is usually in the form of a wire, (not shown), iswithdrawn from the groove of the loop C, the groove being indicated at2, in Fig. 6.

Extending through the section B of the casing is a :so-called needle orrod member 3 having apertures i or other means, provided to receive theends of the snare, the opposite end of the needle 3 being connected to adraw-rod or member 5 which may have a cross section conforming to thesection of casing A, the end of the rod projecting beyond the end of thesection and being provided, in the present instance, with a knurled heador button 6 adapted to be engaged by one end of a lever 7 pivoted at theears 8 of a companion lever 9, each of the levers being provided with asuitable handle portion, and the upper end of the lever 9 being pivotedor otherwise suitably connected as at 10, to the adjacent end of thecasing section A. In the position of the lever member shown in Fig. 1,the button 6 rests against the upper end of the lever 7 and the needle 3is projected forwardly and exposed at the end of the section B and isconnected to the snare which is arranged in the loop C. Upon a closingmovement of the handles of the levers, there is a relative movement ofthe needle or draw-bar in the easing A and the easing B, so that thesnare is withdrawn from its groove in the loop C, the contracting snarepassing through and severing the tonsil.

To facilitate the use of the instrument either upon right or lefttonsils, the loopcarrying section C is adapted to be turned from oneside to the other so as to appropriately dispose the loop C for right orleft hand operation, and this is facilitated by any suitable connectionbetween the two casing sections A, B and as here shown, the sections maybe provided with a sleeve 11 into which the ends of sections A and B maybe insertedy and the parts relatively secured in adjusted position bythe set screw 12, or other suitable means.

Section B may be connected with section A in any suitable manner whichwill permit the revolving of one in relation to the other so that inorder to adjust section B so as to dispose loop C on one side or theother of the instrument it is only necessary to loosen the setl screwand either withdraw section B from section A and reinsert it in thedesired position or turn it as to section B to the desired position andthen fix it in such position by setting the screw 11.

Preferably the loop C is braced to the section B by the provision ofdiagonal and outwardly disposed braces 13, one of which is disposed oneach side of the section B and secured to the outer side of the loop Cso as to hold the latter rmly while it is being applied and also toprevent the accidental breaking or fracturing of the loop C at itsconnection to the end of the casing section B.

What is claimed is:

1. A tonsillotome comprising a sectional tubular casing, one of saidsections beingangularly adjustable about the axis of the case and havinga snare receiving loop bent angularly to, and attached at its side to,the said section, means for securing said sections in said relativeangular positions, a draw-rod extending through the casing and adaptedfor connection with a snare when arranged in said loop, and meanswhereby said rod and casing are relatively reciprocated.

2. A tonsillotome having a carrying member carrying a tonsil embracinglateral snare loop attached to and disposed wholly behind its front end,the plane of the loop inclined rear-wardly from the end of the carryingmember.

3. A tonsillotome having, in combination, a casing section and a tonsilembracing snare loop disposed obliquely to the axis of the casingsection, which latter is connected at its front end to one side of theloop, a line perpendicular to the plane and passing through the centerof the loop transeeting the axis of the section.

4. A tonsillotome having in combination a casing section and a tonsilembracing snare loop disposed obliquely to and wholly rearwardly of thefront end of the section and means for securing the section to theinstrument with the loop in either right or left hand positions.

5. A tonsillotome comprising a tubular section having a snare loop atits front end, operating handles, and means for securing said section inany of various positions relative to the handles.

G. A tonsillotoine comprising operating handles, a member carrying asnare loop, said member adapted to be reversed side for side as to thehandles and means ttor securing the member to the said handles in eitherof its positions.

In testimony whereof I allix my signature.

ELBERT B. SVVERDFEGER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

